Shopping for Faith American Religion in the

Shopping for Faith is as good as it gets in assessing the U.S. religion scene at millennium's end. Cimino and Lattin present a picture of multiple trends headed in often contradictory directions. -- Robert Ellwood, emeritus professor of religion, University of Southern California American religion flourishes in a consumer culture, and presents us with a bewildering array of choices as we navigate the shopping mall of faith. The authors identify dozens of trends which will shape American religion in the next century and bring together the latest research and intimate portraits of Americans describing their beliefs, their religious heritage, and their spiritual search. With warmth and style the authors document how consumerism shapes religious practice -- from conservative evangelical worship to the most esoteric New Age workshop.

RICHARD CIMINO is editor and publisher of the much-quoted newsletter, Religion Watch (http://www.religionwatch.com), which monitors trAnds and research in contemporary religion. He has worked extensively as a researcher and freelance writer for various publications, including Christian Century and Religion News Service. He is the author of Against the Stream: The Adoption of Traditional Christian Faiths by Young Adults.

DON LATTIN is the award-winning religion writer for the San Francisco Chronicle. Over the past twenty years he has interviewed thousands of Americans about their religious heritage and spiritual search. He was a fellow at the Program in Religious Studies for Journalists at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and has also taught religion reporting at the Graduate School of Journalism at the University of California at Berkeley.

Preface

xi

The Authors

Acknowledgments

Introduction: Belief in America

1

(8)

PART ONE Searching for Self and Spirit

The Divorce Between Spirituality and Religion

9

(8)

Spiritual Seekers, True Believers

Varieties of Spirituality

17

(14)

Experiencing Religion

Turning East

Claiming

Spiritual Roots

Mix-and-Match Spirituality

Secular Spirituality

Bringing Spirit to Life

31

(24)

Gender Spirituality

Spirituality at Work

God and Pop Culture

Peace Between Science and Spirituality

Body, Mind, Spirit, and Medicine

Postscript: American Spirituality-Mystical and Practical

49

(6)

PART TWO Searching for Community

Congregations and Consumers

55

(21)

Marketing to Seekers

Why Strict Churches Grow

Traditional Congregations and Worship Wars

Grounding Spirituality in Congregations

Congregations on the Cutting Edge

76

(19)

Small Group Revival

Power to the People in the Pews

Women and the Changing Face of Ministry

Religion in the Post-Denominational Era

95

(36)

Future Faith: Downsized and Decentralized

Renewal Groups: Following the Spirit

Ministering in a Multicultural America

Technology and Virtual Religion

Christian Unity from the Bottom Up

Interfaith Prayers: Peace Between Religions

Postscript: Evangelism-Not Just for Evangelicals

124

(7)

PART THREE Searching for Common Culture

The Politics of Faith

131

(12)

Reaching Out

Religious Right Presses Forward

Religious Left ``Born Again''

Culture Wars, Social Peace

143

(15)

Polarization in the Pews

Challenging the ``Secular'' Media

Seeking Common Ground

Emerging Social Issues

158

(29)

Stewards of the Earth

New Partnerships to Help the Poor

Reading, Writing, and Religion: The Rise of Religious Schools

New Clashes Between Church and State

Cults: Dangerous, Deviant, or Just Different?

Millennial Fever: New Age Vision, Old-Time Religion

Postscript: Personal Faith, Public Life

183

(4)

Afterword

187

(4)

Notes

191

(14)

Bibliography

205

(10)

Index

215

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Shopping for Faith American Religion in the New Millennium

Summary

Author Biography

Table of Contents

Supplemental Materials